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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the mud like in the delta?

2. What does Paul compare his secret to in the beginning of the story?

3. What does Paul think of the effort it takes to answer Miss Buell's question?

4. How does Paul describe the postman's knock on the door of his house?

5. What is it becoming harder to do for Paul?

Short Essay Questions

1. When does the doctor's visit take place in Part 3, and why is the timing significant?

2. How does the way Paul feels at the end of his walk contrast with the way he did at the beginning?

3. How does Paul view his mother's concern at his disturbing behavior toward the end of Part 3?

4. How is Silent Snow, Secret Snow's ending similar to its beginning, and why does the story end the way it does?

5. What is the interruption that occurs in Part 4, and how is it received?

6. How does the snow describe the story it is about to tell Paul as Silent Snow, Secret Snow ends, and what does the story represent?

7. How does Part 3 end, and what is the new sound that Paul hears?

8. What is interesting about the way Paul views the doctor and his parents, and how he chooses to acknowledge them?

9. Where is the snow when Paul first sees it during the examination?

10. How does Paul describe his walk home in Part 2, and why?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What does the lesson Paul is sitting in contrast? Why does the author choose this as the place to start his story? In detail, describe the ways that Miss Buell's lesson provides a representation of reality and how Paul is lost in another world. How is the topic of the lesson significant? Why does it help the reader to understand Paul's fascination with snow? Use specific examples of events from Part 1 to support your analysis.

Essay Topic 2

Why does the author choose snow as the secret that Paul is drawn to? Provide an in-depth analysis of the author's decision and what the snow represents, including its characteristics and the specific ways it is used to display Paul's larger problems.

Essay Topic 3

Describe the confusion Paul experiences on his way home from school, what causes it, and why it happens close to his own house. What does the confusion cause him to wonder about? How does it make him more anxious and impatient? What does the confusion actually represent, and why is it important to the character's state of mind?

(see the answer keys)

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